Bladderwrack
Bladderwrack is Fucus vesiculosus, a brown seaweed with paired air bladders that grows in the intertidal zone of North Atlantic and Baltic coasts and is mostly wild harvested. The whole thallus is washed, dried and milled to powder, and it is also extracted with water or water-alcohol to make liquid extracts and fucoidan concentrates. It is sold for capsules, tablets, teas and bath and skin products.
Suppliers sell different products under the same name. Specify the one you need.
Whole dried seaweed, cut for tea or milled for capsules and tablets.
Water or hydroalcoholic extract for tinctures and blends, sold by herb-to-extract ratio.
Extract purified for its sulfated polysaccharide fucoidan and sold with a stated fucoidan percentage; a distinct ingredient with its own regulatory status.
Seaweed from certified organic harvest areas, with the certificate tied to the lot.
Compare each result with your own specification when the lot arrives.
Keep dried seaweed and extracts sealed in lined containers, cool, dry and away from light. Powder is hygroscopic and should be resealed promptly after use. Shelf life or retest date follows the supplier's specification.
Iodine and arsenic vary by harvest site and season, so each lot needs its own assay and the iodine per serving should be calculated from that lot. Record harvest area and date, and keep the supplier lot traceable to finished batches.
Facts from regulators and standards bodies, each linked to its source.
Health Canada's Kelp Products natural health product monograph lists Fucus vesiculosus (bladderwrack) with the whole thallus as the source part.
Source: webprod.hc-sc.gc.ca (opens in a new tab)The EU Novel Food status Catalogue entry for Fucus vesiculosus (POL-NF-00368) lists the whole seaweed as not novel in food and its fucoidan extract as an authorised novel food.
Source: ec.europa.eu (opens in a new tab)GRN 661, for fucoidan concentrate from Fucus vesiculosus notified by Marinova Pty. Ltd., closed with FDA having no questions.
Source: hfpappexternal.fda.gov (opens in a new tab)This is general information, not regulatory advice. Status differs by country and by how the ingredient is used, so check the rules for your product and market.
Manufacturers and distributors whose own websites say they sell it.
Distributor · Eugene, OR
Mountain Rose Herbs is an Oregon seller of organic and wild-harvested bulk herbs, spices, mushrooms and seaweeds, with a wholesale program for businesses alongside its retail shop.
Suppliers are in alphabetical order and none pays to appear. Each claim is checked against the supplier’s own website on the date shown. Ask for the specification sheet and a recent COA before you order, and confirm details with the supplier.
Common forms include dried cut or powdered thallus, liquid extract, fucoidan concentrate and organic. Ask each supplier for the specification sheet of the exact grade they quote.
Expect identity, iodine, heavy metals, microbiology, fucoidan assay and moisture and ash, each with its method, specification and result for that lot.
Keep dried seaweed and extracts sealed in lined containers, cool, dry and away from light. Powder is hygroscopic and should be resealed promptly after use. Shelf life or retest date follows the supplier's specification.
Health Canada's Kelp Products natural health product monograph lists Fucus vesiculosus (bladderwrack) with the whole thallus as the source part. The EU Novel Food status Catalogue entry for Fucus vesiculosus (POL-NF-00368) lists the whole seaweed as not novel in food and its fucoidan extract as an authorised novel food. GRN 661, for fucoidan concentrate from Fucus vesiculosus notified by Marinova Pty. Ltd., closed with FDA having no questions.
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